We are in a historical moment that is disturbing and inhumane on a massive scale.

Families are fleeing from violence, climate crises, and economic devastation, seeking asylum in the United States while Southern governors are discarding human beings for their own political gain. Whether newly arrived or having lived here for decades, the vast majority of immigrants leave their homes to come to the US to provide for their families. Thus, immigration and work are inextricably linked -- in essence, two sides of the same coin. Undocumented immigrants are relegated to work in some of the most dangerous and least regulated industries. They suffer through underpayment of wages, unsafe working conditions, racist insults, sexual harassment, and more. In Cook County alone, $7.3M in wages is stolen every week by not paying proper minimum wages and overtime, or forcing workers to labor off the clock.

Formerly incarcerated workers face similar barriers as they are systemically locked out of direct-hire employment. The use of criminal record screenings keep workers unemployed and/or force them to apply to positions through temporary staffing agencies where they encounter lower wages, with fewer or no benefits, and unstable scheduling process. Having a criminal record forces workers into this discriminatory system, suppressing wages and preventing workers from organizing for better pay and conditions. These conditions worsened during the pandemic and exacerbated structural and racial inequalities throughout the US.

Raise The Floor Alliance operates on the front lines of abusive work schemes which serve as racial proxies to drive down conditions on communities who are over-represented and least protected in low-wage industries: people of color, women, gender-nonconforming people, immigrants, and formerly incarcerated individuals. These workers live paycheck to paycheck, oftentimes day to day. Historically, they’ve been denied basic employment benefits such as minimum wage, overtime, unemployment, earned sick time, retirement benefits, workers’ compensation and more. Interlocking systems of oppression exacerbate workers’ risk of exploitation, resulting in even further marginalization based on identity including race, gender, ability, immigration status and more. Workers of color and women are occupationally segregated in the lowest paying jobs with the least benefits and protections. The relentless struggle to make a living from low-wage work takes a toll on working families. Yet, for the vast majority, the paths to justice are extremely limited, and the cost of pursuing justice is too high. Racialized and gendered disparities in employer retaliation mean workers of color are less likely to speak up for fear of being unfairly disciplined, terminated, or deported. 

RTF leverages relationships built over decades by our worker center members to develop legal assistance programs and policy campaigns that address the complex experiences of these workers to enhance their sense of efficacy and to improve workplace conditions and rights. RTF was founded by Arise Chicago, Centro de Trabajadores Unidos, Chicago Community & Workers Rights, Chicago Workers Collaborative, Latino Union, Warehouse Workers for Justice, and Workers Center for Racial Justice. Collectively, RTF reaches thousands of workers in food production, warehousing, manufacturing, restaurant, janitorial services, gig, childcare, temporary staffing, domestic work, and other low-wage sectors. RTF’s community-driven model shapes priorities from grassroots leaders who provide us a direct eye to evolving issues with avenues to hear new information about how concerns emerge, grow, and shift. Since our inception, RTF has developed expertise in areas disproportionately impacting low-wage workers including wage theft, discrimination, unsafe working conditions, workplace retaliation, and more. By tackling the most urgent barriers to access to justice, we create pathways for long-term wealth creation, housing stability, better hours to attend to personal and family needs, and improved health outcomes.

RTF’s commitment to workers isn’t just stipulated by what’s possible under our current legal paradigms. Our direct insight allows us to hear new information about how concerns emerge, grow, and shift, such as worker hotlines, referrals from organizers, and worker center visits. We apply the knowledge of gaps in policy design and enforcement to our legislative campaigns, forming a closed feedback loop that enhances our impact. We operate as first responders to emerging schemes and disrupt the path of exploitation from moving from the margins to the center. We win change that concretely improves the conditions for the future of work. RTF worker centers have won 22 amendments to Illinois labor laws including the Illinois Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, Responsible Job Creation Act, establishment of the Office of Labor standards, increases to minimum wage laws, paid sick days and more